Concrete that is full of holes may sound like a useless invention, but at the Donald E. Davis Arboretum it is just what the doctor ordered, or at least what the building science professor ordered.
That professor is Michael Hein and the concrete is pervious concrete. Since 2003, Hein has run a student project to replace deteriorating asphalt at the Arboretum with the porous pavement.
Hein said the project began when he was approached by Dee Smith, the curator of the Arboretum, because the rain water run-off was damaging the pond in the Arboretum.
"That's when we had the idea to start using pervious concrete to replace the trails," Hein said. "Many of the trails run cross slope, so you've got this sponge and all of the water comes rushing down, and it'll get sucked into this pervious concrete."
Pervious concrete differs from traditional concrete because a fine material, such as sand, is not used to fill in the gaps between the larger pieces of rock that make up the concrete. These gaps allow water to pass through the concrete instead of forcing it to run across the surface.
The Environmental Protection Agency has recognized pervious concrete as a legitimate substitute for traditional concrete when trying to reduce water run-off.
"The whole idea is to get the water back into the soil where it belongs," Hein said. "Instead of having all of these hard surfaces where the water sheets off and goes back into the street. It goes back into the ground where it is filtered naturally."
Now, whenever the Arboretum has asphalt that needs to be replaced, Hein instructs his classes to carry out the project.
Hein said he was unsure of the total amount of work his classes have done, but it amounts to "several hundred feet" of pathways over the course of several projects.
Regardless of the exact amount of path laid, the people of the Arboretum appreciate the efforts of Hein's classes.
"It's definitely been beneficial for the Arboretum," said Patrick Thompson, an Arboretum employee. "There's less work in path maintenance and it's an avenue for students to work with green technology."
Hein said the eco-friendly nature of pervious concrete is one of the reasons he wanted students to get involved with the project.
"It's becoming more popular around the country so they'll be prepared when they go out into the industry because they'll have this knowledge of this material," Hein said.
Hein's students enjoyed the project as well.
"It was outside the norm; it's not something everyone knows about," said Preston Cope, senior in building science. "It was really hands-on and I enjoy that type of stuff," Cope said the experience was valuable.
"I feel like its going to be a big part of building in the future," Cope said. "It's going to be and it should be."
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